Centuries-old angels revealed beneath layers of paint at Boston church made famous by Paul Revere

These angels are getting their wings — again.

Mural conservators in Boston are working to uncover 20 angels hidden for more than a century underneath layers of paint at the church attended by Paul Revere — just months before the 250th anniversary of the patriot’s historic ride.

Gianfranco Pocobene has been meticulously and tirelessly chipping away atop scaffolding at Old North Church, most famous for being Revere’s house of worship — where he even served as a bell ringer as a teen.

Conservator Gianfranco Pocobene descends from scaffolding after restoring 300-year-old painted angels on the walls of Old North Church in Boston. AP
A nearly 300-year-old fresco depicting an angel on the wall of the historic Old North Church in Boston. AP

The angels, painted around 1730 and sculpted with round almost childish features and wings, used to be one of the church’s defining features when they were first painted in the early 18th century.

They remained there until 1912 when they were inexplicably covered by thick coats of white paint — a steep departure from its original look.

“For much of the church’s history, people who were coming here to the church would have seen those angels, would have seen the colorful interior,” said Emily Spence, the associate director of education at Old North Illuminated, which operates the church as a historic site.

“The color scheme was an important part of the identity of the people who worshiped here as members of the congregation of a Church of England church.”

The back of a recently restored 300-year-old angel in Boston’s Old North Church. AP
Conservators Corrine Long and Gianfranco Pocobene climb down scaffolding after restoring 300-year-old painted angels in Old North Church, Boston. AP

Now, restorationists like Pocobene are working to put the angels back on their rightful display.

They began by removing some of the scaffolding in early December to reveal eight of the 20 obscured angels. Another eight are expected to be uncovered in the spring, Spence said.

“It’s really been quite a revelation to find these really interesting and historic works of art on the walls of the church that nobody has seen in our lifetime. Just to be part of a project where we are revealing something from colonial America is really extraordinary,” Pocobene said.

The Old Church is one of the most popular tourist attractions on Boston’s North End, having been made infamous by Revere’s 1775 ride to warn of the British army’s impending arrival.

Corrine Long touches up one of the angels. AP

Two lanterns hung from its steeple that night, which “Paul Revere’s Ride” poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow noted in his 1860 poem, writing “one if by land, and two if by sea.”

With the 250th anniversary of his historic ride coming up in April, church leaders have pushed to highlight its 1723 founding and history, not just the reverence brought to it because of Revere.

The Old Church was first established as a landmark for liberty, but also had ties to slavery, with many of its first attendees profiting from the trade. It was constructed to provide homes for Boston’s surging Anglican community.

The angels were on the walls when the church was first constructed, according to a copy of a contract signed with John Gibbs, the congregation member who painted them. A paint study from 2017 confirmed their existence but not their condition.

Seven layers of paint stood between the angels and freedom, which painting conservator Corrine Long said was easily one of the most difficult challenges she and Pocobene faced.

Corrine Long tends to one of the angels. AP

The team used a solvent gel to soften the layers before manually removing them with a plastic scraper. They used cotton swabs to clean the angels and retouched them to cover or remove any noticeable damage the best they could.

“They all have their own character — they’re not copies. The artist John Gibbs painted them individually and they’re all in different poses, which gives them a really wonderful rhythmic kind of pattern across the surface of the church,” Pocobene explained.

Unveiling something church founders originally intended for attendees to see was a proud moment for Long.

“Whenever I go into a building with history, it amazes me to be surrounded with paintings or the decorations that were there originally. When it’s been repainted to be white, it takes away some of that majesty and some of that history,” she said.

With Post wires